


Patience Is Always A Virtue

by DeathsLastPrayer



Series: Being A Superhero Doesn’t Always Mean You Feel Super But Saving People Makes It Worth The Trouble [2]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan, 進撃の巨人 | Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan (Movies)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Quirks (My Hero Academia), M/M, Quirks, Series of chapters, WIP, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-22
Updated: 2020-02-22
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:53:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22842814
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeathsLastPrayer/pseuds/DeathsLastPrayer
Summary: In Which: Jean navigates through life, lessons, and gains while growing into his Quirk. There's also the bit where he'll have to accept himself for who he is and who he'll become while trying to accept Eren too but, that's easier said than done.Set in the Boku no Hero Academia/My Hero Academia Universe... Kind of... Or, well, SnK/AoT borrows their world and quirks for a bit.THIS IS PART II
Relationships: Carla Yeager/Grisha Yeager, Jean Kirstein & Eren Yeager, Jean Kirstein/Eren Yeager, Levi/Erwin Smith
Series: Being A Superhero Doesn’t Always Mean You Feel Super But Saving People Makes It Worth The Trouble [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/804507
Comments: 6
Kudos: 36





	Patience Is Always A Virtue

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome, welcome... Let's see if I can pull this semi-crossover (Not really a cross-over, though) off after such a long hiatus! Forgive me for my absence!
> 
> OH!!! WARNING!!! I'm not sure if this is a trigger but there's parental death in this fic, so... yeah. Just in case. Also, a lot of angst but it definitely gets happy.

* * *

##### 

I. 

* * *

Dewy honey-brown eyes stare at the ceiling as a four-year-old Jean wills himself not to cry because- because he’ll never be as special as his papa. 

Never ever. 

And it’s not fair.

It’s not.

“Jean…” Erwin slowly pushes the door open and- ah. Yes. His child is taking the news much as he expected him to. “Jean.” Even though his tone is soft and sympathetic, it holds just enough command to tug those glossy eyes in his direction. And it’s as heartbreaking as he expected it to be; however, “You’re absolutely perfect the way you are, Jean.”

“You’re lying!” Because he’s broken! It’s what the kids at school say and it’s what the doctor just told his papa and it must be true if the doctor that patches up his papa says so without actually saying those words but he’s smart enough to read between the lines so-

Erwin frowns and fully moves into the room. He sits at the edge of his son’s bed and racks his brain –blames himself for all of this and for asking Grisha for an opinion with Jean in earshot. A minor mistake on his part. “Has your papa ever lied to you?”

Well… Jean’s face twists into a grimace because- fine! His papa has never ever told him fibs but that doesn’t explain what’s wrong with him –which he says.

And it makes Erwin chuckle, “Your quirk is… stunted.” Or, as Grisha so kindly put it, _highly underdeveloped_. Had Jean stayed to hear the rest of the conversation, he’d know that he still has time to grow –time to overcome and develop… so long as he demolishes whatever mental barrier is holding him back. “You’re still a child, Jean. You have time.”

Jean really, really wants to believe his papa. He does. But- but everyone else at his school either has a quirk or they don’t. The end. There’s no in between and- well- kay… he’s still little but four is about the time everyone gets something- anything! A twitch. 

He’s been coming up empty.

Erwin sighs and hates himself a bit for raising a child that’s too practical for his own good but better that than a child who’s oblivious. With that in mind, he plucks Jean from the bed and plops him on a sturdy knee, blue eyes connecting with gold. “No matter what anyone tells you, no matter what you want to believe, believe in your papa. And your papa swears to you that, one day, you’ll unlock a quirk to rival my own. Until then, how about I sign you up for basic self-defense and combat classes?” It’ll at least give his child something else to fixate on.

And Jean likes the idea. Says just that.

He’ll take a chance and he’ll trust his papa because, just like his papa said, he’s never lied to him.

  


* * *

* * *

* * *

  


Jean’s quirk reveals itself on the first day of school.

See, he’s playing on the playground and staring at the girl with the bright red clips in her hair and trying to figure out how to play in the sand with her without upsetting the boy with eyes the color of the ocean (they’re kinda really pretty) and a horrible frown that’s been scaring everyone away –everyone except the girl and a tiny blond boy with glasses. Jean’s sitting and thinking and working and re-working plan after plan to break into the bubble those three have and it’s just when he gets the nerve to walk over when everything starts to move too fast to pay attention to. 

But Jean takes note of it all the same.

Just as he walks across the courtyard, the teacher blows the whistle and they’re all rushing to get inside and then that boy- the one with the really pretty eyes- explodes. He burst into flames and Jean gets so, so scared and reacts without thinking -is close enough to instinctively grip at a small hand and the flames shut off in an instant but there’s burnt skin and terrified eyes and- and then everything goes dark.

Jean never sees or hears about that boy after that day but his papa tells him the kid- Eren Jaeger- ends up okay. Goes to live some place safe where his quirk can… what’s the word his papa uses… “flourish”.

Whatever the case, Jean learns that he can “mute” quirks within a certain range but it doesn’t always work when he wants it to and, sometimes, it works when he doesn’t want it to.

But that’s one of those things he learns later.

* * *

##### 

II. 

* * *

He gains absolute access to his powers when he’s six.

It’s funny and horrible all at once how it happens –how he’s mouthing off to some jerks in his class and- yes. Jean can admit to himself that he royally screws up. Royally. His pa makes sure to tell him every morning to keep his lips zipped and to be a good boy. It’s all the man ever asks –Jean knows. But he’s only six and gets a bit fed up with the thrill of everyone praising his pa –praising Ultra. But no one knows that’s his pa. No one. And he’s usually okay with not saying anything or blurting a thing out. Usually. Until they bad mouth his pa –have the audacity to call his pa _(his pa)_ a fraud. 

Which Erwin Smith definitely isn’t.

So… everything after he mouths off and brags and gets into that fight- everything after all of that is absolutely his fault.

That very day, his pa decides to pick him up from school. Says he’s long overdue for a check-up from the great Dr. Grisha and they’re heading there in their truck and talking about school and Jean wants to tell his pa that he blabbed (wants to so badly) but then… But then the car is toppling and skidding and-

And Jean panics. Blacks out when his head thuds against the door. Panics more when he comes back to himself and blinks awake –can’t figure out how long he’s been sleeping but he’s up and- 

Oh God! 

His pa!

He can’t-

“Jean…” It’s a raspy faint mimicry of what his strong and self-assured pa usually sounds like but that’s him.

He’s there and wrapped around Jean and Jean sits up and there’s blood and- “Papa… you’re… you’re bleeding!” There’s blood everywhere. 

Everywhere.

Jean didn’t even know that his papa could bleed but he is and there’s so much and he can’t- he doesn’t-

“Took care of ‘em… you’re… okay.” His breaths are staggering and labored.

Jean knows enough about these things to know that’s not good and they need help. They need something or someone or- why? How? They need answers too because- because-

Because it’s probably all his fault for mouthing off. 

He told the whole class that his pa- that Ultra was bringing him to see Dr. Grisha and-

“Jean… need you to…” Erwin falls silent, lets his eyes rest because he’s so tired. Too tired. But there’s Jean and Jean needs to be safe.

Needs protection. More than he has and he’s such a good kid. A sweet child with a reckless mouth but a sweet child nonetheless.

“Papa… Papa… please wake up…” Jean is two seconds from a full on panic attack because his mom is already gone and he can’t… not his papa-

“It’s’okay… ‘m okay…” But he’s probably not. He just has to be for Jean’s sake.

That’s more than enough incentive to at least live. Not enough to keep him awake.

“Papa!” Jean slaps at his papa’s face but the man is out cold and- yeah. He’s panicking and he just- it’s all his fault. All on him and he’d take back his bragging if he could. He’d keep his lips zipped and all of that jazz. He’ll do anything if- if-

A branch cracks and he whips around, terrified. And then he’s caught in teal pools that shimmer with gold. Gets a bit lost and forgets the world for a split second before those eyes widen and stare beyond him. To his papa.

“Yes, I can help but-” Eren frowns because he can’t. He just can’t. All of a sudden, he can’t read the boy’s mind and can’t touch Ultra who definitely needs his papa and- he frowns and walks over to Jean, pulls the kid to his feet and cups filth smudged cheeks with both hands. “Stop it. Stop blocking my powers. I’m trying to help.” It’s the only explanation really. As soon as he entered _“Jean’s Space”_ , everything cut off.

Everything.

Jean’s so confused he- “What? I’m not…” But that would explain why his dad is _bleeding_ and _hurt_ and- and there’s no time to think, just move. “If I walk away a bit, you can help my papa?”

Eren nods. “I can get him to my dad and my dad can help. He’s a doctor.”

There’s something about those determined eyes and that confident tone that Jean just trusts so he nods too –walks a few paces backwards and stares at the boy the entire time. Moves back further until he’s far enough away for Eren to lift his papa with some crazy cool invisible force and- wow. If things were happening under different circumstances, he’d think the kid is really awesome.

For now, he’s just glad that someone found them.

  


* * *

* * *

* * *

  


It’s interesting to see how special the next generation is. Their variety of quirks and insurmountable potential makes Grisha feel so very proud to exist. To be a part of the evolutionary discoveries and revolutionary progression of the current generation is nothing less than a privilege. For example, he’s been fortunate enough to encounter people of great fortitude and unlimited potential. He’s naturally created a child with those very capabilities.

And he’s been in constant contact with another.

Foils as Jean and Eren are –their quirks being at extremely different ends of extraordinary- as a pair, they stand at the evolutionary pinnacle. The top of the food chain. So long as they learn to dominate their respective quirks as opposed to those quirks dominating them.

Ah, but those are thoughts for a latter time and under different circumstances. For now…“You’re fine, Jean. Aside from the bump on your head and a little bruising, you’ll recover quickly. Erwin will certainly heal so long as you stay clear so that he can do so at his usual accelerated rate.” And isn’t that a fascinating thing… Grisha is entirely enthralled with Jean’s fully awakened quirk, which he says.

Jean… not so much. “I can’t turn it off and on when I wanna. It just- it does what it wants” Which means everyone will always be in danger –everyone with a quirk. Like his dad.

“All quirks have an off switch or mute button.” Even the most powerful of quirks can be negated or counteracted –Grisha knows this from personal experience. “What if I told you that there is a way to learn to control your quirk?” A way that he’s been perfecting for decades and it’s worked for his own son. Of course, he’ll have to speak with Erwin on the matter but he doubts that the man will mind.

“Will it hurt?” 

Grisha laughs and meets that weary golden gaze. “Not at all. You’d simply have to wear a quirk restrictor that’s calibrated to you specifically. It looks like a watch and controls the flow of the given quirk.”

“Will I be able to sit with my pa?”

“Most certainly.”

Jean nods slowly, “Okay… please.”

When Grisha fastens the restrictor onto a small arm, he can’t help but thinking that this is only the beginning to another child’s greatness. 

He looks forward to the future –their future.

* * *

##### 

III. 

* * *

Jean’s eleven when _“The Jaeger Murder”_ makes the world explode. 

And everything changes.

Everything.

The murder is covered on nearly every channel with reenactments, speculations, and opinions from _“experts”_ but no one actually knows what happened. In fact, the only truth that Jean knows for certain is that the smartest man he’d ever met and the sweetest woman in the world were murdered on Eren’s tenth birthday. That’s, by far, the worst possible birthday memory anyone can have and he can’t imagine that Eren’ll ever celebrate that day the same. 

And then he thinks about Eren not having parents altogether and how Eren’s kind of all alone in the world now so… So, all of the years of rivalry and animosity that sit between them vanishes with those thoughts because fuck a petty jealousy when the world as anyone knows it can end in the blink of an eye.

Funny thing… or not so funny but, well… Jean picks up on the fact that no one ever talks about Eren on the news. No one asks questions about the sole Jaeger heir or what he might’ve seen or where he is… if he lived… Nothing. And that’s weird but there’s probably a reason because there’s always a reason. Always. Maybe Eren not being mentioned in the news has something to do with his pa and his pa bringing Eren to their home. 

Actually… that makes sense. 

The strongest man on earth protecting the only survivor of the most notorious villain slaughter to date… definitely makes sense.

Well, the world changes with _“The Jaeger Murder”_ and it’s like a ripple effect that spreads, mutates, and simmers like a virus that’s affecting everyone. 

Namely Eren. For that kid, it’s more of a cancer than a virus but… well…

There’s probably not much that anyone can do about that –about Eren’s pain.

Especially when Jean considers what he’s seen and heard with his own two eyes. Like, the nights when Eren wakes up screaming and cracks the walls in his sleep because his nightmares must be really vicious (and Eren does that while he’s wearing the restraints). There’s also the fact that Eren doesn’t say more than a handful of words in a given day and hauls up in his room. And Eren definitely isn’t eating enough because he rarely leaves his room but he’s grieving so… 

So Jean tries to keep his distance. 

Tries to give Eren space and tries to understand. 

Except, he’s eleven and he remembers a six-year-old brat appearing out of thin air and saving him and his pa and asking for nothing. Jean stubbornly recalls that same little shit invading his personal space, making him watch Batman, and kicking his ass in video games to the point where Jean almost forgot that it’s his fault his pa was laying in a room unconscious. Almost. 

So he’s fully prepared to pull Eren back or what-the-fuck ever it is that he needs to do to bring back a fraction of the cocky smile he’s used to seeing every time he’s ever had to see Eren.

It starts with the small things: leaving breakfast bars on Eren’s desk, bringing in his homework from school (because Eren hasn’t gone and no one’s making him go –not yet), unpacking some of his things, putting up some of his family pictures because they’re all family now. 

He thinks Eren notices. 

Jean catches him one time while they’re all eating dinner –bright aquamarine eyes going wide as they get caught on a picture hung in the dining room (Dr. Jaeger smiling with one arm wrapped around his pregnant wife). Eren stares at Jean the entire dinner, gaze vivid and clear and- and he utters a soft, sweet, “thank you” (makes Jean’s heart skip and leap into his throat) when he walks by to put his plate in the sink before disappearing like normal.

But it’s a step in the right direction.

Which is probably why he convinces himself one night during one of Eren’s really bad dreams that it’s a good idea to walk into the room and curl up in bed right next to Eren. And it’s such a hazard to his health because there’s shit thrashing around the room and the bed is levitating and Eren’s levitating and- and it’s something straight out of an exorcism movie but Jean ducks and dodges until he’s pulling himself into the bed. He yanks off his own restriction band and everything in the room immediately drops. 

Eren wakes up when the bed crashes and he thrashes wildly but Jean holds him close and mutters “You’re safe, dude. You’re safe.” 

Bright yellow eyes blink blue-green and then Eren’s entire body goes slack, eyes fluttering shut as he whispers, “okay” before passing out in Jean’s arms.

After that night, it just becomes habit for Jean to sleep with Eren curled in his arms or at his side or even for Eren to climb into Jean’s bed on the nights that he thinks he’s fine but he’s not. Like, an unspoken agreement between the two of them. Just for the two of them.

And soon, Eren starts opening up after a few nights spent invading Jean’s space. 

Starts with good mornings and good nights. Small talk at the dinner table. Asks for little things (certain food on food run days, bathroom things, personal curiosities…). Starts to unpack his room –makes it a little bit more of his own as the days pass by. Tries to be active –does all of his homework in less than two days (and if Jean hates him a bit for that, he doesn’t say it out loud) and ventures outside (even if it’s only as far as the mailbox, at first). 

Eren’s face even starts to express emotion again –can almost work up to the smile Jean’s been looking for… he gets a slight twitch of the lips from Eren whenever Eren sees him. 

By the summer, Eren’s got his cocky smile back altogether. He talks a mile a minute and has Armin and Mikasa over and never lets Jean out of his sight. He spends nights rough housing with Erwin or shuffling through his quirks (trains them with Erwin as his springboard and Jean as his personal restrictor). There are days spent reading, eating, and playing. Going to beaches. Being a petty hero that saves cats from trees, dogs from sewers, or dolls from neighborhood bullies. 

By the end of the summer, Eren remembers how to live. 

But Eren never talks about his parents or what happened. He still has nightmares that Jean quells with his quirk. Still has bad days where the anger is overwhelming and everyone is the enemy –Jean and Erwin included. On those days, he talks about revenge or hulls up in his room. Fights and bickers with Jean about any or everything and ignores Erwin (spews venom about Erwin “not being his father”).

Every day is an adjustment for everyone and no one expects anything different. 

Despite all of that, Eren’s smile starts to touch those gorgeous eyes.

And Jean likes to think that he brought Eren back –even if it’s only a little bit.

And that’s the biggest change of them all.

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry about the hiatus but... adulting. That's really all there is to it! Anywho, if you dug it, drop me a line or hit that kudos button! Thanks for reading! Feel free to chat, I always chat back!


End file.
